Knee-Cap dislocation treatment advice?

I've dislocated my left kneecap thrice in my life since I was fifteen, twice playing basketball and once on a trampoline, and most recently last week I dislocated my right kneecap doing farmwork. Every time they slide out to the outer side of the knee, and I fall and have to relocate it myself. The whole episode is extremely painful and recovery usually takes three weeks, during which I cannot really walk and my whole knee becomes very swollen.

I am a broke college student from a not-so-wealthy family and at the moment I have no health insurance. I don't want this to happen again, because I am quite sure every time it dislocates it damages the miniscus and cartilage in the knee, and possibly the lateral collateral ligament.

In the future if I can get health insurance, or save up money for an operation, does anyone here know if surgery can help my condition (that is, my kneecaps I believe are congenitally prone to dislocating: they sit rather high and are easy to wobble and push with the fingers, though the rest of my leg is normal.)? Could surgery prevent future kneecap dislocations or repair internal tissue damage?